A spotter is someone trained to look for something. Spotter may refer to:

Sports

Spotter (auto racing) A spotter in auto racing is a trained team member whose job is to relay information to their driver, keeping them alert of what is occurring on the track. They are typically positioned higher, atop one of the grandstands or other support building ...

, a type of navigator in auto racing * Spotter (weight training), someone who assists someone lifting a weight in order to prevent injuries *

Spotting (climbing) Spotting is a climbing technique that is used mostly in bouldering, where other climbers stand beneath an active climber on a climbing route, route in order to break the impact of any fall, and to reduce the chance of an uncontrolled fall that cou ...

, a person who stands below a climber for accident prevention

Military or policing

Spotter (sniping) A sniper is a military or paramilitary marksman who engagement (military), engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equip ...

, member of a sniper team who assists in observation of targets and handles ancillary tasks *

Spotter plane Surveillance aircraft are aircraft used for surveillance. They are primarily operated by military forces and government agencies in roles including intelligence gathering, maritime patrol, battlefield and airspace surveillance, observation (e.g ...

, an aircraft used for surveillance *

Artillery observer An artillery observer, artillery spotter, or forward observer (FO) is a soldier responsible for directing artillery and mortar fire support onto a target. An artillery observer usually accompanies a tank or infantry unit. Spotters ensure that ...

or spotter, a person who is responsible for directing artillery and mortar fire *

Informant An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a "snitch", "rat", "canary", "stool pigeon", "stoolie", "tout" or "grass", among other terms) is a person who provides privileged information, or (usually damaging) information inten ...

, a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency

Hobby observation

Weather spotter Weather spotting is observing weather for the purpose of reporting to a larger group or organization. Examples include National Weather Service (NWS) co-op observers and Skywarn storm spotters. Storm spotters A storm spotter is a specific type ...

, an individual who observes the weather to inform media or others **

Storm spotter Storm spotting is a form of weather spotting in which observers watch for the approach of severe weather, monitor its development and progression, and actively relay their findings to local authorities. History Storm spotting developed in t ...

, a weather spotter who observes severe weather events * Aircraft spotter, a hobbyist who tracks and records the movement of aircraft * Bus spotter, a hobbyist who seeks to see all buses in a particular fleet or produced by a particular manufacturer *

Wildlife observation Wildlife observation is the practice of noting the occurrence or abundance of animal species at a specific location and time, either for research purposes or recreation. Common examples of this type of activity are bird watching and whale watchi ...

, noting the occurrence or abundance of animal species for research or recreation *

Trainspotter A railfan, train fan, rail buff or train buff (American English), railway enthusiast, railway buff, anorak (British English), gunzel (Australian English), trainspotter (British English) or ferroequinologist is a person who is recreationally in ...

, a person interested, recreationally, in rail transport * Ship watching, tracking and observing the passage of various ships * Satellite spotter, a hobbyist who observes and tracks artificial satellites that are orbiting Earth

Other uses

* Spotter (maneuvering), an individual who helps guide a vehicle * A local writer for ''

Spotted by Locals Spotted by Locals is a publisher of a series of travel guides (apps & blogs) with up-to-date tips curated by handpicked locals in over 80 cities in Europe, the Middle East and North America. The city guides are curated by "Spotters", people who l ...

'' travel guides * Various dolphin species of the genus ''

Stenella ''Stenella'' is a genus of marine mammals in Delphinidae, the family (biology), family informally known as the oceanic dolphins. Species Currently, five species are recognised in this genus: ''S. rayi'' was a species of this genus found in N ...

'' * Shark spotter, someone who engages in shark surveillance for

shark attack prevention There are a range of shark attack prevention techniques employed to reduce the risk of shark attack and keep people safe. They include removing sharks by various fishing methods, separating people and sharks, as well as observation, education ...

* An American term for a banksman

Sports

Military or policing

Hobby observation

Other uses

See also